Venice high-wire act

Many regard the Venice beachfront as a three-ring circus, and Sunday it displayed a special sideshow – a live high-wire act.

Stephen McPeak, a 33-year-old Las Vegas aerialist, walked swiftly and steadily across a wire 52 feet high and 200 feet long as skaters, vendors and sunbathers gazed upwards. The stunt, which took place between two old buildings on Windward Blvd., was a way of commemorating the opening of the street in 1905, said Ricki Kline, who served as pitchman for the event.

“This has always been a recreational area, with the old Pacific Ocean Park and all,” said Kline, who lives and works in Venice. “The live act is a symbol of the resurgence of the neighborhood.”

This photo by former staff photographer Cal Montney was published in the Aug. 27, 1979, edition of the L.A. Times.